


Guardian Archangel

by TheWarsmith



Category: Cyberpunk 2077 (Video Game)
Genre: A - Freeform, Cyberpunk, Drama & Romance, F/M, Male V (Cyberpunk 2077), Survival, The Star Ending (Cyberpunk 2077)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-14 23:40:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 20,920
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29426844
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheWarsmith/pseuds/TheWarsmith
Summary: This is my take on a continuation to the Star Ending. With that ending, it absolutely felt like there was more story to be told, so I can only hope to do it justice. This follows the male V, Panam and the Aldecaldos as they desperately search for something that can help with V's condition whilst the clock ticks down, all whilst simply trying to get by. In this, V and Panam have gone for the romance, and I've chosen the Nomad/Bakkers background for V.Also with this, I have chosen to feature a V that rescued Takemura during the Search and Destroy mission, and he features prominently.Whilst I'm trying to be as true to the characters as I can, there will be times where I inject some of my own canon, in places where I feel the characters as we already have them could have used more development. I aim to touch on the main characters backstories in a bit more detail, and also bring some of the other characters we come across over the course of Cyberpunk 2077 into the Aldecaldos story.Hope people like!
Relationships: Goro Takemura & V, Panam Palmer/V
Comments: 6
Kudos: 54





	1. Tucson

_2.23pm_   
_Thursday, late 2077,_   
_30 days since Mikoshi_   
_Temporary camp, a rocky plateau somewhere near San Lucy Village, Arizona_

‘Shit!’ Panam yelled, looking under the Thorton for the first time since they last stopped. ‘Shit, shit, shit, shit. Fuck!’ The loud clang of a wrench being angrily whacked against the chassis soon followed.  
‘Not in great shape then,’ exclaimed V, walking over towards the wheel arch that Panam was lying under.  
‘You could say that,’ she replied, before pulling herself out from under the vehicle to look him in the eyes. ‘You could also say that scuppers our plans of gettin’ to Tucson within the next couple of days. I’m sorry V, I…’  
‘Panam, don’t apologize, we’ll figure somethin’ out, just like we always do, remember? None of us could have known the raffens would just descend on us that quickly, or that we’d have to escape through another damn haboob…’  
Indeed, only hours before, the Aldecaldos had endured one of their worst encounters with the Wraiths yet, having been vastly outnumbered and taken by surprise. Worse still, the Wraiths had managed to take the Basilisk, before pursuing the survivors more than four miles across bumpy, inhospitable desert until they lost them in a dust storm. Much of the family’s resource pool was also lost to the Raffens after being turfed out of the last camp - ammunition, food supplies, canvas - and the full throttle desert run across the Arizona no man's land had more than taken its toll on the vehicles. Panam’s Thorton now had a sheared axle, and the rest of the cars barely looked in much better shape. Now, all that she could hope - all that any of the clan could hope - would be that they’d be able to get up and running again as soon as possible, with what little welding equipment they had, and the determination to get things fixed. ‘I’ll speak to Mitch,’ V continued, ‘ see what he’s got stored away, see if we can’t get the old warhorse up and running again before tomorrow.’  
‘Thanks, V,’ Panam said, ‘I’m… I’m glad to know that you’re here for me.’  
‘Course,’ said V, his tone growing mellow. ‘It’s the very least I can do for you after everything.’  
She blushed a little. ‘One other thing, V?’  
‘Yes?’  
‘Do you really think I made the right call, pitching our last camp in that depression? I mean, we had cover, but we also knew that the Raffens operated in that area. I guess I just thought we’d be able to handle ourselves against them better.’  
‘Panam,’ V said, looking her squarely in the eyes. ‘Sometimes, you just gotta make a call, okay? Hell, I think it’s the fact you were able to make that call in the first place that Saul picked you as leader. When things don’t work out, you just gotta live and learn, and be confident in whatever decision you make next.’  
‘I guess I just can’t help but second guess myself sometimes,’ she said, looking down at the dusty ground and then back up at V. ‘Thanks for the talk. And… for everything, really.’  
‘Again, glad I could help,’ he replied, before turning away to go and find Mitch.  
‘V,’ Panam stopped him before he had turned around fully. ‘Just one more thing?’  
‘What’s up?’  
‘You’re bleeding again’

_6pm_

For now, the Basilisk and the lost equipment would have to wait. All the senior Aldecaldos gathered around the two crates that had been roughly arranged as a makeshift table. Carol, Cassidy, Panam, V… Mitch was leading this briefing this time.  
‘So the plan was to get to Tucson by the end of tomorrow, in order to try and catch Travis and the goons from Metacorp before they gotta leave for their biz in Oregon. As you can Imagine, though, that might be a bit tricky, what with our current predicament, but if we put our everything into getting back on the road, we might stand a chance’.  
Yes, Metacorp, V thought. The nomads turned corpo. A couple of years prior, Mitch, Panam and Saul had managed to strike a deal with Travis and his Metacorp crew, wherein the clan would temporarily offer logistics and protection services to any Metacorp convoy led by Travis if the need arose, in return for resources, eddies, and favors. However, the Aldecaldos and Travis’ outfit had not encountered each other much since they first struck the deal. Nonetheless, Travis was also a skilled ripperdoc by trade, and over time, had successfully dealt with numerous cyberware malfunctions and unusual cases. He also had connections, and if he didn’t know what to do himself, he might at least know more places that V and the Aldecaldo’s could look.  
‘We all know that Travis has to be in Oregon by Saturday evening, so we won’t have much time to spare. With the gear we’re packin, following him all the way up the East Coast won’t be practical anyway.’ Mitch continued. ‘What I ask of everyone is that we all pitch in to get up and running again, on the off chance that we catch him before then. ‘Myself and Cassidy will work on fixin’ any electrical equipment that was damaged by that EMP. Panam, V, Carol, I expect you’ll be workin’ on the vehicles. Besides that, we’re gonna need all the hands we can get, so anyone who wasn’t doing anything before, now’s your lucky day. That’s our plan, do we have any objections?’  
In response to this, there was no reply from anyone save for the sound of the arid, desert wind. Every one of them was either too tired or too drained to argue, but at the same time, Mitch was right - now more than ever, they needed to pitch in and help each other. In fact, Panam was a little relieved that someone besides herself was calling the shots. She liked the respect she now had, but also felt the weight of responsibility. She walked back towards the hastily assembled tent that housed her Thorton, and V followed. Gathering some welding equipment and whatever tools they could, the two of them worked through the night whilst barely uttering a word, and the rest of the Aldecaldos did the same.

_1.05am_   
_Watson, Night City_   
_24 days since Mikoshi_   
_キツネは一人で歩き、マスターを探します_

A beige van made its way through the dirty, neon lit streets of Watson. The noise, the smells, the sound of ‘walk, don’t walk’ were all there just the same, even this late at night. The Villefort Columbus V340-F did not stand out or attract any second looks. It drove East through Little China, turned left just past the Megabuilding H10, and made its way past the hospital and Towards Kabuki Market. The van then drove just beyond halfway around the central pagoda, before turning off onto a discreet, narrow back road, and after driving a short way down the cul de sac, the van pulled to a halt, and the driver got out. His disheveled appearance betrayed little to the undiscerning eye, and yet, he carried himself with both a peculiar grace and menace. Beneath the black hood that matched his equally black clothing, the man’s glistening, silver eyes scanned the area, the data from his optics feeding directly to his prefrontal cortex. The door with 24 in neon signage above. That was the door number he was to enter. It would be unlocked, unguarded. The message of where to come had been received just shy of twenty four hours beforehand, sent by one of the many individuals the man had no relish of seeing again, with encryption that even the most skilled netrunner would have trouble cracking. He cautiously approached the door. With his left hand, he extended his palm to touch the panel that would allow it to open. With his right, he clasped his handgun. The door slid open, and only the faint glow of neon strips illuminated the stairway that led to the dark basement below, accompanied but nothing but the sound of a faint, electrical buzz. The hooded man followed the stairs down, before continuing into a dimly lit corridor, with only one more door between him and his objective. He pulled the hood down to reveal his silvering dark hair, and a camera tagged him as he made his way through, but he did not flinch. The light on the camera turned green, and as it did so he heard the sound of the magnetic clasps on the door in front of him unleash. The door opened, and a blue eyed man waited inside to greet him.  
‘So Goro,’ he said. ‘I see you’ve decided to accept my offer.’

_7am_   
_Friday morning_   
_Temporary camp, Arizona_   
_31 days since Mikoshi_

V awoke. In truth, he felt as if he had barely slept to begin with. Whats more, he now had an ear splitting headache, and felt ready to throw up. Panam lay next to him, her arm across his chest. He knew he had to get up. The pain in his head was close to unbearable, and he also knew he wouldn’t be able to hold down his stomach contents much longer. Further still, he knew he didn’t want to wake Panam. She deserved the rest, perhaps more than anyone else. Carefully, he moved her arm from him and back to her side, and then began to haul himself up. He stood, slowly, before managing to shamble his way over to the tent flaps. Usually, he loved to watch the sunrise over the desert, back when he rode with the Bakkers. Now, though, it physically hurt him. But he was determined not to wake Panam, to allow her to worry any more. After all, now they had repaired the axle, at least temporarily, meaning they had at least some hope of getting to Tucson in time. It was clear that the combination of severe exhaustion, fatigue, dehydration, and a nervous system that was slowly destroying itself as the result of a malfunctioning biochip clearly were not doing him wonders. He managed to exit the tent, staggered forward a couple of steps further, until, then and there, his knees gave way beneath him. His hands reached out to stop himself, and he knelt there briefly, before he could hold back no more, and threw up on the dusty ground. He was a mess. This was the worst he had been since he fell into Vik’s clinic that day not so long ago.  
‘V?’ He heard Panam’s voice sound from the tent. ‘V? V! Oh my god, what’s wrong?’  
Shit, he thought. Mission failed. She didn’t deserve this, not after everything. Before he could respond, she quickly roused herself and rushed over to him as he keeled over sideways. ‘Please, V, she said with a quiver in her voice, ‘tell me what’s wrong?’  
‘I… I feel sick,’ he replied. ‘I didn’t wanna wake you.’  
‘Dammit, V,’ she snapped, ‘stop being so goddamned noble. We’re gonna get you sorted out, okay?’ She crouched by him, and looked around to see if anyone else was up. One of the Aldecaldos nearby was just getting out of her tent to see what was going on. ‘Hey, you!’ she yelled, ‘get over here and help us!’ The young woman ran over.  
‘Oh my god Panam, is he okay?’  
‘Goddammit Ellie, does he look okay to you?!’ Panam shouted. ‘Run and get us some fuckin’ water!’ Ellie simply nodded, looking visibly upset from the outburst, and ran off to the Kaukaz with the supplies on board. A few seconds later, she returned, carrying two plastic bottles, and handed them to Panam. ‘V, can you sit up? I’ve got you some water, okay honey?’ She helped him sit up, and handed him one of the bottles. V grabbed the bottle, and downed the whole thing in a matter of seconds. ‘Thanks, Panam,’ he said. ‘I think I can manage.’  
‘Not long now,’ she promised. ‘We’ll get you to Tucson. We’ll get you checked out. And maybe someday, we’ll get you fixed for good. Now for fucks sake get some rest, we’re gonna head out in a couple of hours, okay?’  
‘Could say the same for you, couldn’t I?’  
‘I’m not tired. Do you need me to help you back into the tent?’  
‘Think I can manage that at least.’  
‘Good, good. Well go on, lie down, take some meds, drink some more water. That’s an order.’  
‘Yes ma’am,’ he sarcastically replied. Panam then stopped for a moment, turning towards the rest of the camp. She saw Ellie walking back towards her tent. ‘Wait,’ Panam called.  
‘Yeah?’ replied Ellie.  
‘I’m… I’m sorry I snapped at you just now, I really am. All this, the Raffens, V… it just gets to me sometimes. But I shouldn’t take it out on you, really.’  
I… I understand,’ Ellie said. ‘Don’t forget, I’m here to talk if you need anything.’  
‘Sure, Ellie,’ said Panam. ‘Will do.’

_9.30am_

‘So we all set?’ Carol asked Mitch, as they finished loading the last of the vehicles. Through collective effort, the Aldecaldos had now cleaned up and packed up, and were now ready to head out. ‘Yup,’ Carol replied, as she tightened the last cargo strap on the Kaukaz she would be driving. They had found a way they could join the I-8 Eastbound, and from there, it would be plain sailing into Tucson. Of course, only V, Panam and Mitch would actually head into Tucson proper, as an entire train of nomads would attract too much attention. The rest of the Aldecaldos were to make camp on a ridge just outside the city limits. Good visibility, defensible - Cassidy had suggested the spot, and would take charge whilst the core leadership was absent. The sound of engines revving reminded V of the morning before the raid on Arasaka. Hopefully today, at least, they wouldn’t lose anyone. V had recovered from his morning episode, mostly, and was now ready to move on. Seeing no reason to delay, he got into his own Quadra, and joined in the machine chorus. It felt good to be behind the wheel; to feel the engine pur, to smell the CHOOH2. He wouldn’t be able to enjoy it for long, of course. When they reached the ridge that would be their new camp, he would join Panam in her Thorton, Mitch would follow them as they rode into Tucson, and the rest of the clan would make camp. But now, as the tires kicked up dust and the convoy got moving, V was able to experience a rare moment with just himself, his thoughts and the open road for company.

_11.15am_   
_Somewhere along the I-8 Eastbound, Arizona_

Now that the majority of the clan had pitched up, V was once again riding shotgun with Panam. Mitch was following them in the Colby, and Carol had joined him, also riding shotgun. The old Warhorse’s suspension definitely did not feel as smooth as it should, and was accompanied by frequent, unnerving creeks. Nevertheless, she had held up thus far, and only needed to make it to the next auto shop.  
‘Panam,’ V piped up, breaking the silence between them that felt like forever. ‘If this guy’s gone already… or never showed in the first place…’  
‘V,’ she interrupted, ‘let’s just focus on the road, okay?’  
‘Right,’ he replied, before falling back into silence. About a mile later, unable to silence his thoughts, V flicked the radio on for a moment's distraction.  
‘Do we have to listen to this claptrap?’ Panam sighed.  
‘Just wanna see what’s goin’ on back in NC’ V said back.  
‘Fine,’ she said, ‘just hope you’re not gettin’ any thoughts of going back there.’ The report began.  
‘ _Hello, I’m Gillean Jordan, and you’re listening to N54 News. Our top story tonight - Arasaka Corporation has gone into administration. This follows a number of underlying security failings at the corporation, which were made apparent when nomads raided Arasaka Tower a little over a month ago, causing the deaths of hundreds of employees, many of them unarmed. Investigations into corporate negligence remain ongoing, and the whereabouts of the company’s CEO, Yorinobu Arasaka, is reported to have not left his Tokyo home in weeks. Also unaccounted for is the head of Arasaka security in Night City, Adam Smasher, who disappeared during the raid. What we do know is that there will be a vigil and a minute’s silence held to commem…_ ’  
Panam switched it off again. ‘Nothing we haven’t heard already,’ she said. ‘Just try to stay focused, okay, we’ll be there soon.’

_Somewhere in the Badlands near Night City, North California_   
_7.55pm_   
_26 days since Mikoshi_   
_キツネはマスターを追いかけて新しい獲物を見つけます_

Purpose.  
What purpose? He had purpose before, with the corp. He was a good soldier. He had been an exceptional operative. And finally, he was a bodyguard without peer. And yet, after all those years, he could never have foreseen this. His training simply had not prepared him for it. From the day he received his first implant, all the way up to the final moments of the Emperor himself, he imagined he would serve Arasaka to the end, and yet, here he was. In some ways, he did serve them to the end - he just thought that would mean his end, and not their end.  
 _What purpose do I serve now_ , he kept asking himself as he gazed out across the flat desert back towards the city, where the vibrant neon from the corpo towers began to consume and devour the fading orange haze that was the last of the days natural light, now slipping away beneath the Pacific horizon. The offer was good, and he had little reason to turn it down. He had almost all the information needed. Almost, that was, except for the target's exact whereabouts. The target was a man he may have once considered a friend. He had helped this man before. This man was a thief, and an idiot, but also resourceful, and so many other things as well, many of which he had yet to discover. He felt conflicted, and he couldn’t shake that feeling. But right now, this man was one thing to him and one thing only - a traitor. The first message he had sent since the raid had been in anger. He thought that if only he expressed his thoughts openly, it would make things better. It did not. He had looked for ways back into Arasaka, but those hopes crumbled with the corp, turning to dust and ashes much like the first Arasaka Tower more than fifty years ago. The offer he had been made was his last hope at redemption. He did not know what to think of the man who had given him the offer. He certainly did not trust him. However, after weighing it over, he found himself unable to find a better alternative. If not for that, his Katana looked like an increasingly good option. The offer gave him three things.  
The first of these was the possibility of a way back into corpo life, albeit through Militech. His honor, his dignity - would be compromised. He did not know how to feel about being taken into the fold of Arasaka’s Western rival, but at least it would offer him that lifestyle he once knew. Prestige, challenge, a sense of belonging.  
The second of these was Justice. Justice against the one who ground the corporation that had given him everything to dust through recklessness. Justice for what happened to Oda. And finally, justice for deliberately ending the lives of non-combatant Arasaka personnel, including Hanako Sama herself. When he was told about that, he had decided it was the final straw, even if he could barely believe that his target would do anything like that. Yes, justice. Or was it vengeance? Either way, his mind was now made up.  
The third and final thing the offer would give him was that purpose. He had a clear objective, a course of action to take, something he could do to right the wrongs caused to him. That objective had now taken him here, to a forsaken wasteland just outside the city limits, still too close to the city to avoid the chemical stench, and yet too far to benefit from any of the city’s amenities. The man he was to meet went by the name of Mack. He was a nomad - or, more specifically, one of America’s rogue nomads. The so-called Wraiths. The purpose of the meeting was to gather intel. Without this, he would have a tough job of getting any lead on his prey, and this Mack was supposedly able to help. 19:58, his clock said. He liked to use a twenty four hour clock. It reminded him of his service. Mack should nearly be here, he thought to himself. Sure enough not a minute later, he soon noticed a distant pair of headlights headed in his direction. The car proceeded down the highway - five hundred meters, four hundred, three hundred, two hundred… one hundred... fifty... He was able to judge exact distances with alarming precision. The car finally drew close enough that he could make out what it was - the modified, off road capable Thorton Galena pulled just off the road, and came near to where he was standing. Sure enough, the word Wraiths was emblazoned on the side of the vehicle. A man got out. He had a hulking frame, and enough cyberware to make a Maelstrom ganger jealous. He opened his mouth to speak. ‘You Takemura?’ he bluntly asked.  
‘It is I,’ Takemura responded. ‘So then, what do you have for me?’

_11.45am_   
_Tucson, Arizona_

Tucson was no longer a tiny spec in the distance, and after what felt like so long driving across empty desert, the Mackinaw was finally passing through city centre, with Mitch and Carol following close behind. Tucson wasn’t much to look at. It couldn’t have changed much over the last hundred years. Maybe the crime rate was higher now, but little else. Soon enough, the two cars reached the meeting place, and found space to pull up. They were at the site of what once was the old Arizona Stadium. Now, it was little but a monument to an America that once was, decorated by graffiti and corpo propaganda. ‘Nice place,’ V commented. ‘I’m sure the Voodoo Boys of Pacifica would feel more than at home here’.  
‘Not a truer word spoken,’ Panam remarked.  
‘I tried to reach Travis on the holo,’ Mitch said. ‘Couldn’t get through, unfortunately. When we last spoke, he told me this would be where he’d set up for business. Apparently the chromers queue up whenever he comes round, but I see no sign of him.  
‘We should look around, search the area’ Mitch said. ‘Seems too early to give up yet.’  
‘You guys go,’ said Panam. ‘I’ll drop the car off at the auto shop and then rejoin you.’  
‘Garage is a few blocks away,’ Carol said, ‘want me to follow in the Colby and drive you back?’  
‘Yeah, sure, thanks Carol,’ Panam replied. ‘You boys are okay to go on ahead for a bit?’ She looked towards Mitch and V.  
‘Course, Panam, no problem,’ Mitch replied. ‘Promise we won’t get lost!’  
The two of them set off into the dusty streets of Tucson on the off chance that they might find their ripper. As they set off, Panam got down to look at the axle again, before preparing to mount up and ride out. ‘Not holdin’ out too great,’ she said.  
‘Shit,’ Carol replied. ‘How far away was that auto shop again?’  
‘Mile and a half? She’ll make it that far, at least. I just can’t promise that it’ll be a quick job.’ Panam sighed for a moment, and proceeded to lean on the hood. ‘Carol,’ she then said, looking over to her. ‘What do you do when you’re scared?’  
‘Whoa there girl,’ Carol said back. ‘Askin’ me the tough questions before I’ve even had my first drink of the day?’  
‘You’re right, Carol, I…’  
‘There’s somethin’ on your mind, and it’s troublin’ you. Not about to let you suffer in silence now, am I?’  
Panam’s tone softened, and she looked at Carol, allowing a half smile to creep across her face. ‘I don’t know what I would do without this family,’ she said. ‘But I feel like I’ve only just begun to properly appreciate that. And it scares the hell outta me. I’m scared of what I could lose, that I might let the family down. I’m scared for V, of losing him. I… I just dunno what I would do…’  
She trailed off. Carol looked Panam directly in the eyes, and put her hand on her shoulder.  
‘Panam,’ she began, ‘I’ve known you since you were knee high, all the way back when Saul first took you in and you already wanted everything yesterday. You’ve never given up or backed down on anything, so I guess what I’m trying to say is you got this. You’re the best successor to Saul any of us could’ve asked for, know why? Cause you got stones, girl, and you won’t hesitate to make a call. Now let’s get your car dropped off and find out what kinda trouble those boys have gotten themselves into.’

_4am_   
_Sunset Motel, just outside Night City_   
_27 days since Mikoshi_   
_彼は狩りの準備をしている_

He had everything he needed. It was not much to go on, but it was enough. Arizona. That was the direction the intelligence he had been given pointed him in. Tucson area, specifically. And he was with a family of nomads from the Aldecaldos nation. How this information had come to be obtained he could only speculate, but its reliability was assured to him. Everything was ready, and so was he. For the last time before crossing the border, Takemura inspected the contents of his van. Sniper rifle - check. Assault weapon - check. Handgun - check. Katana - check. Binoculars - Check. Supplies - check. The list went on. He knew he would be gone for some time, but there was enough space in the van to house his equipment. Finally, he checked the van over, scanning almost every area where a device or tracker could be hidden with his optics. All clear. He had attracted no attention thus far. If he had, he would know. At the border, his excuse would be that he was selling off old Arasaka equipment to nomads. They would believe him, of course, because they had no reason to argue otherwise. He was ready. Closing up the van, he looked back one last time towards the neon skyline and bid Night City a final farewell, before climbing into the driver's seat and starting the engine. Next stop, Arizona.

_11.55am_   
_Tucson_

The two men made their way past the stadium grounds, along some of the dusty backroads, and ended up looping back around. Unlike the bustling streets of NC, here, there was hardly anyone about, save for a few gangoons here and there. They wouldn’t be much use. V remembered Panam’s words back in Rocky Ridge - ‘That’s how town’s die - not with a bang, but with whispers and whimpers.’  
Apparently that applied to cities as well.  
They turned another corner, and proceeded several yards further, before V and Mitch decided to stop and lean against an old wall, taking a brief moment to shelter under a canopy from the oppressive Arizona sun.  
‘Mitch,’ V said all of a sudden. ‘I need your assurance of something.’  
Noticing V’s sudden candour, Mitch stopped. ‘V,’ he said in reply. ‘What is it?’  
‘Somethin’ I’ve been thinkin’ about a lot, lately,’ V said. ‘What if we don’t find this Travis guy, what’s the plan then? I mean, I get that you vouch for him, and that he’s good and all, but even the fuckin’ inventor of this damn thing couldn’t help me with it. How do we know some travelling ripper will do better?’  
‘V,’ Mitch replied. ‘The honest to god truth is that I don’t know he will do any better. Right now, though, the thing we need more than anything is hope. I’m just thinkin’ of the family, of Panam. You see the way she looks at you. If you give up now, it’ll break her.’  
V felt his eyes start to sting all of a sudden. He didn’t know if he’d felt this way about anyone before. As a merc, people needed him. They needed work done, goods moved, people killed. But until recently, only very few truly relied on him like she had. She was prepared to do anything for him, and he knew he couldn’t let her down. ‘Mitch?’ he asked, trying to hold back the fact that his eyes were welling up more. ‘What should I do, when, you know… when it starts to get really bad?’  
‘V, I…’ Mitch trailed off, seeming flustered at first, but was then able to come up with a response. ‘Never stop fighting,’ he said. ‘For all of us. Panam especially.’  
‘Funny,’ V managed to reply, barely avoiding choking on the lump in his throat. ‘That was the last thing my guardian angel ever said to me.’  
‘Johnny,’ said Mitch. V then let out a little chuckle.  
‘Johnny, Johnny, Johnny,’ he said. ‘You and him might’ve got along, really!’  
‘You think?’  
‘Who knows,’ V said. He went quiet for a while, taking in the surroundings, gazing at the mountains in the far distance. V felt grateful for these rare moments of serenity. It was not to last, however, for in the distance, V and Mitch could all of a sudden hear engine noise. It was moving closer to their location. ‘D’you think…’ V remarked.  
‘Nah,’ replied Mitch. ‘Unless…’  
Sure enough, there and then, a large vehicle turned a corner and started down the street where the two of them had stopped. The vehicle was a heavily modified Chevillon Emperor. In addition to raised suspension, armour plating, snorkel and roof mounted autocannon, the vehicle was also decked out in white, with a red star of life symbol painted on each door. If there was ever a vehicle for a travelling nomad ripperdoc to use as a mobile clinic, this was it, and it couldn’t be missed from a mile off.

_8pm_   
_San Lucy Village, Arizona_   
_28 days since Mikoshi_   
_キツネは休むのをやめます_

He had made good time so far. No unwanted attention, no obstructions or diversions. This is where he would stop for the day. It was small, discreet. There was also a small motel here where he could stay the night, not overly dissimilar to Sunset. After locking and making his van secure, Takemura walked up to the entrance, and entered the bar area. It was quiet, and the decor was faded. He walked over to the bar, and sat down upon one of the kitsch aluminium bar stools. The bartender turned round to face him, finishing up polishing the glasses. ‘Hey there, stranger,’ she said. She must have been around fifty-ish, and had long, greying brown hair tied back into a ponytail. ‘You come far?’  
‘California,’ Takemura responded, giving little away. He paused for a moment, and looked at the 24 hour news reel that was playing on a screen the other side of the bar. Arasaka. Administration. Negligence. It was like he was constantly being bombarded with reminders of failure. He turned his head back towards the bartender. ‘You have rooms?’ he asked politely.  
‘Sure do, sugar,’ she replied, ‘got room number 10 all ready for the next guest. Can I get ya anythin’ else whilst you’re here?’  
‘No, fine, thank you.’  
‘Not even a drink?’  
‘I will just have water. Thank you.’  
‘Fine then, I won’t push!’ she said. She pulled a tumbler out and filled it from the cold water tap. The glass finished filling, and she took it and set it down in front of Takemura. He nodded in response. The bartender looked at him again. ‘Say, were you,’ she said, her tone suddenly becoming hushed. ‘Were you there? When the raid happened?’  
Takemura had only just twigged that she was looking at his neck implants. Although he was dressed as plainly as he could be, the implants were difficult to hide, and the Arasaka logo was still clearly visible.  
‘No,’ he replied plainly. ‘I was… not on duty that day.’  
‘And… dare I ask what brings you all the way out here?’  
‘I am here on business,’ he plainly replied. ‘The less you know, the better.’  
In response to that, she simply nodded nervously. Takemura gulped down the water, and put the glass back down on the bar.  
‘I’ll get someone to show you to your room, shall I?’ said the bartender, this time with a slight quiver in her voice.  
‘Yes,’ Takemura responded. ‘That sounds good.’

_5.30pm_   
_Tucson_

Travis had just finished. The four Aldecaldos had managed to catch him in the nick of time, but V was to be the very last patient he would examine before his departure. He had years of expertise dealing with faulty cyberware, helping who he could. Doing what he could. But this - he had never seen anything like it. Travis jacked out, having run a full diagnostic. He had also done a full body scan to assess V’s wetware.  
‘Not sure I like the look you’re given’ me right now,’ V started. He found himself reminded of his first encounter with Anders Hellman, of being told back then that there was barely any hope for him.  
‘V,’ Travis said in a gruff yet serious tone. ‘I should speak frankly.’ He looked at the other three, then back to V. ‘You say you were given six months as an estimate,’ he continued. ‘That is likely your absolute maximum. V, it is your body that is dying this time. The very anatomy of your nervous system has been reconfigured by that biochip, and with your engram trying to control a body it no longer recognises… the simplest way I can put it is that it’s like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole, and the thing the hole is made in is splitting apart. Even then that doesn’t even begin to come close. Now, this could be months from now, or maybe even as little as weeks, but… your body will truly start to die. You might begin to experience memory problems, dizziness, blackouts, seizures. After a while, it’s likely you’ll fall into a vegetative state, and this could happen some time before you finally slip away…’  
V gulped, and the nausea he felt that morning had returned. But by far the worst thing of all was the quiet, subdued whimper that he heard Panam make behind him, and as he looked back she had turned her head down, trying as she so often did to mask her emotions. He didn’t know exactly what a broken heart sounded or looked like, but this came pretty damn close.  
‘Travis?’ he said, quiet as a whisper, turning back to face the ripperdoc. ‘Is there nothing we can do?’  
‘If there was any solution, kid, I’d be the first to point it out to ya. But right now… right now you’re a medical anomaly, and the only way I think we could fix you would be to regenerate your entire nervous system. Every neuron in your body would need to be restored to how it was before the biochip. I’m afraid the only hope I can give you is that science will advance enough over the next few months for that to even be possible.’  
To this, V simply nodded, his face showing nothing but dismay. Behind them, Panam was trying desperately to hold back tears, but to little avail. Mitch and Carol tried their best to comfort her, but it only did so much. V got up, and went over to exit the back of the Chevillon, his head held low.  
‘Listen,’ said Travis finally, looking at Mitch, Carol and Panam. ‘I gotta delta soon, but I can see how much this guy means to you. If I ever find anything else out that will help, I’ll call you, okay? Just keep me posted, and don’t be a stranger.’  
With that, Mitch, Panam and Carol followed V out of the vehicle. The four of them walked off in silence, before splitting off into pairs, with Mitch and Carol heading back to the Thorton Colby, and V and Panam heading off to the auto shop.

_1am_   
_San Lucy Motel_   
_29 days since Mikoshi_   
_思わず獲物の匂いを捕まえる_

The bed was lumpy, and the sound of the air conditioning kept him awake. Or did it? Perhaps it was just his own thoughts doing that instead? He remembered his childhood, or at least what little he could of it. The slums, the noise. The first time he had to defend himself against a group of gangers...  
He remembered when he was selected, and he remembered the first time he met the Emperor. The values that had been instilled in him all those years ago. Order, he remembered being taught, was perhaps the greatest good he could work towards. That gave him purpose, and he could achieve that through the corp. He remembered Rio de Janeiro, not all that long ago. 2074, it was. He remembered leading the special forces team that brought an end to the terror cell there. He remembered the heat of the Brazilian jungle, the reek of the favelas, and the abject squalor. He remembered the sight of the burning tree canopy, incinerated by the thrusters of his AV as his section made its final assault on the insurgent stronghold. During that operation, he was directly responsible for the termination of exactly twenty six terrorists. They had rejected order, and so he showed them the true meaning of chaos. He remembered the day of his appointment as the personal bodyguard of Saburo Arasaka himself. The pride, the duty…  
And yet all of that now seemed so very long ago. He turned over, and then…  
All of a sudden, he heard the sound of cars pulling into the motel car park. Probably nothing, he thought to himself. It could be nothing, or…  
He found himself compelled to get up and investigate. Cautiously, he moved over to the window, and peeked through a gap in the blinds. Three cars had pulled up. He scanned each of them. Nomad vehicles, boasting typical nomad modifications. He assessed how they were decorated. They had a number of garish motifs emblazoned upon the bodywork - horse skeletons, slogans, such as fuel my fire and shoot to ride. They were Aldecaldos. He watched as they exited their vehicles. Their guard was down, had probably come here to catch a cheap drink and celebrate whatever their latest plunder was. If they were from the right family, this was the best lead he’d come across, and he’d be a fool not to chase it. This may not quite be Tucson afterall, but it was nevertheless on the way. Carefully, he packed away what little he had taken with him into the motel, and made his way towards the door. He exited the motel room, and felt the chill of the night desert air. His van was only a few meters past where they had parked, he could easily slip by unnoticed. One by one, the nomads entered the bar. Meanwhile, Takemura skirted across the back of the car park, sticking to the darkness and staying completely unnoticed. First, he needed to check that these were the correct Aldecaldos, and not just any Aldecaldo family that happened to be in Arizona at that time. He knew he couldn’t get too close to them, less suspicions were raised. Too risky. Instead, the most viable option left was to hack the motel network and use the security camera to spy on them. He had noticed one by the bar when he was there earlier, which would probably be perfect for the job. First, he had to hack the network. There was an additional security camera that overlooked the parking lot, he could do it using this. He pulled out one of his devices, scanned the camera, made sure it was in signal range, and…  
There. He was through the ICE. It was not difficult, neither did he expect it to be. He cycled through the cameras on the network, eventually landing on the one in the bar. He scanned. He focused on a group of Aldecaldos in one of the booths. He sat through their idle conversation for a while, but after a while, he heard names mentioned - Saul, Panam… V...  
‘Bingo,’ he quietly muttered to himself. This was them. Only thing left was to locate where they were camped. He had a plan for that as well. Continuing to move across the parking lot, he reached his van, and silently opened up the back for his equipment. He had been presented with a golden opportunity to track his prey - unattended vehicles in a dark, empty parking lot. His gear was there. He opened up one of the bags, and pulled out a small device. He closed the back of the van, and then, making sure he remained unseen, quietly approached the nomad cars. He did not need to worry about the cameras now; he had deactivated them after he hacked them, and as long as no one was looking, he could go up, finish his business and head back to his room. He scanned. He remained undetected. Advancing a couple of meters further forward, he managed to reach one of the vehicles. He got down low, and assessed the underneath of the vehicle. Underneath the front bumper? No, not enough protection. Engine bay? Chance of overheating, increased risk of detection. No. Wheel arch? Good protection, well hidden… perfect. Takemura took the device and carefully placed it inside the front wheel arch, and the built in magnets secured it in place as comfortably as he could ask for. Just then, a nearby door opened, and he heard voices spilling out the bar. They almost had visual on him. Quickly, he glanced over to his left. A couple of spaces along, there was another car, this one clearly not belonging to the nomads. Whatsmore, the suspension was just high enough to fit underneath it. It was not ideal, but he had to act now. Quickly, he rolled the way over to the next space, and slid underneath the car, making an effort to conceal his whole body. As much as he tried to do it discreetly, however, he could only conceal the sudden movement so well.  
‘Shit,’ he heard one of the Aldecaldos say, ‘think I saw something move!’  
‘Jumpin’ at shadows again, kid,’ said one of the others.  
‘Maybe,’ he replied, ‘but I just wanna check it out.’ The Aldecaldo moved close to the car that Takemura was hiding under, and he was forced to remain completely still. He held his breath, and counted the seconds. He saw the pair of feet come right up close to the car, and he had his hand on his knife. If he was threatened, he knew what he had to do.  
‘Probably just the Coyotes, Joel,’ called out one of the other Aldecaldos.  
‘Probably right,’ he replied. Joel went off to join the others. As they each got in their cars and started their engines, Takemura finally breathed a sigh of relief. His target was now very much in his sights.

_6pm_   
_Teddy’s Auto’s, Tucson_

‘Tomorrow? Are you fucking kidding?’  
‘Panam,’ V said, trying to calm her down.  
‘Look,’ said Teddy, the lead mechanic. ‘We’ll get it done as soon as we can. But this ain’t a small job, so don’t be given’ me that.’  
‘Fine, sorry, just get it done as soon as you can.’ V put his hand on her shoulder, and this seemed to help calm her down a bit.  
‘I’ll call Mitch,’ V said, ‘tell him not to wait for us back at camp. We’ll find somewhere, maybe it’ll even be somewhere nice, I’ve got the eddies. It’s on me.’  
‘Ha!’ Panam let out. ‘Somewhere nice, out here!’  
‘Gotta be some spot that the locals go,’ he said. He then turned to look at the mechanic. ‘Say, Teddy, you able to recommend anywhere at all?’  
‘Me, seriously?’ he replied.  
‘Sure,’ said V.  
‘Fine. Alright, there’s this real nice place on East Waverly. Got rooms, food, good booze, music, and great vibes, if that kinda place is your style.’  
‘Panam?’ V asked. ‘May I escort you?’  
‘Fine,’ she replied. ‘You may.’ The two of them left, and V made the call to Mitch, letting them know not to wait.

_6.10pm_   
_Tucson Aldecaldos Camp_

**EVERYTHING OKAY?** Cassidy texted to V, whilst sitting on the roof of one of the Kaukaz trucks. It was a good spot they had picked. He could just see Tucson in the distance, and was able to get a clear, uninterrupted signal. He waited five minutes, but there was no reply. However, he then got a text from Carol.  
 **MORE CAR TROUBLES ON THE PANAM FRONT, IT’LL JUST BE ME AND MITCH COMIN BACK TONIGHT. BUT DON’T SCRIMP ON MARSHMALLOW’S JUST THE SAME! :D**  
As he read this, he chuckled to himself. However, then another text came through.  
 **BEING SERIOUS THOUGH, WE COULD HAVE HAD BETTER NEWS FROM TRAVIS. TELL YOU MORE WHEN WE GET BACK.**

_10.30am_   
_30 days since Mikoshi_   
_Plateau somewhere near San Lucy, Arizona_   
_獲物はかろうじて逃げる_

He had finally found the camp, and the moment he assessed the area through his binoculars, he was immediately impressed by the kit the Aldecaldos were packing. Modified cars, a good quantity of stolen Arasaka tech, advanced computer systems, and was that… a Militech Basilisk? Heavily modified as well. He remembered the news reports from several weeks ago. Militech convoy ambushed by nomads, valuable hardware plundered, etc.  
To think I ever could have imagined the amount of trouble you were capable of getting yourself in, Takemura thought to himself. To think I ever underestimated you. He was in position, and the van was concealed. Proper reconnaissance would need to happen first. He continued to scan. Children were playing among the tents. Some of those who he guessed were the senior members were gathered around one of the central campfires, talking amongst themselves. He knew a dust storm was coming in though, and that he would have to act quickly. And then he saw his target. V…  
V emerged from one of the tents, followed by a young woman wearing a red and gray rally jacket, and her hair was arranged into a messy, dreaded bun. This must be Panam, their leader. In the past, Takemura had heard V mention her once or twice. He could tell just by watching them that they were close. Personal attachment. If she was their leader, and something happened to him, he could be dealing with the entire clan if he was not careful. The storm drew closer, he could see it. He readied his rifle. The Tsunami Ashura was a reliable weapons system, perfect for the job. He loaded the weapon and brought it into his shoulder, but as he did so, he heard a noise. This was not the storm, no, although it was nonetheless close. No, this was the sound of engines. Could this just be other Aldecaldo’s returning to camp? Unlikely, no Aldecaldo vehicles were observed coming out from this way earlier. He then also remembered that there were a group of Wraiths camped out in a nearby warehouse. The Aldecaldos had underestimated them, this much Takemura could tell. He put the rifle down and pointed his binoculars Northeast, towards where the sound was coming from. There were vehicles alright - at least twenty of them. Two groups of three then split off either side of the main convoy. Pincer movement. They were moving to flank the Aldecaldos, with the main spearhead directed right at the heart of the camp. Takemura could notice that the Aldecaldos had heard this noise, but by the time they were able to see the convoy, it was too late. They scrambled to their posts in a desperate effort to defend themselves, but they were already surrounded. Takemura could not get a clear shot. The dust storm drew closer, and if he took his shot now, both sides would be looking for an enemy sniper, and they would be alert. Time to abort. Takemura grimaced, as he packed up the gear and carefully made his way back to where he had hidden the van, managing to avoid detection among the ensuing chaos. He snuck his way back to the large boulder that it was hidden behind, and pulled the camo netting up just enough for him to enter the cab, before getting in and making sure the door was firmly shut. He would wait out the storm in here. Soon enough, the wall of sand and dust descended, reducing the visibility outside the van to nothing. Well, almost nothing. Through the murk, through the haze and the dust, he thought he could just make out some red lights moving past, accompanied by engine noise. Brake lights. The Aldecaldos, it seemed, were escaping. His mission was far from over.

6.30pm  
The Rifle Taphouse, Tucson

Panam followed V through the double doors and into the bar area, and the thing that struck both of them was how old the soul of the place felt. The building was not exceptionally old in itself, but as the pair of them walked up to the bar, there was something of a time long gone about the place. A time before she was born, perhaps, but a time that she nonetheless felt somehow familiar with. In a sense, it was fairly obvious why - an old jukebox in the corner, a relic in itself, played songs from long before either her or V’s time - even before the days of Samurai. The floor in there was checkered linoleum, with cozy booths flanking the outer walls where the windows were. There was a medium lull, and the customers largely matched the decor; old timers, sure, but with a real sense of life to them. As quaint as this all was, however, there was only one thing on Panam’s mind right now, and that was the fact that she had fallen hard for a ticking time bomb, and it seemed like every step forward in diffusing it was two steps back. If that was how she was feeling, she could only imagine what he was going through. She took in her surroundings with a half smile as the two of them neared the bar, still trying to hide how much of a punch in the gut the news from Travis felt like. They reached the bar, and sat down upon the retro aluminium and leather barstools. V looked to her, with a similar half smile that barely concealed what he was feeling.  
‘Day’s not over, yet,’ said V to her, his tone now soft and gentle. ‘Still got time to break my heart.’  
‘What?’ responded Panam, confused.  
‘Don’t remember our conversation when we walked into Sunset for the first time together?’ He turned to the bartender. ‘Broseph, two of em,’ he ordered. The bartender opened up two broseph bottles, and put one in front of V and one in front of Panam. ‘Anything else?’ he then said.  
‘Yeah,’ V replied. ‘We’ll rent your nicest room. Just make sure it has a double.’  
‘I see what you’re doing,’ Panam replied. ‘And I appreciate it, I really do, I just… I don’t know if I’m in the mood right now…’  
‘Fine,’ V said. Care to find a seat and get some food at least?’  
‘Sure,’ said Panam, ‘I could manage that.’

_Some time after 7pm_   
_Tucson Aldecaldos Camp; The Rifle Taphouse_   
_31 days since Mikoshi_   
_最後に、キツネが閉じます_

He was nearly there. He could just about make out the vehicles and tents in the distance, illuminated by campfires and industrial lamps. Using the tracker that he deployed back in San Lucy, he had been able to follow them across Arizona thus far, whilst maintaining his distance until the right moment, which meant putting his van through both highway driving and the occasional off road stretch. All that was earlier. Now, he was nearly upon them, and his prey was so close. The ground here was largely flat, so he had needed to hide the van further away, and for much of the approach, he had been cautious enough to crawl his way there. As long as he stayed low, he was practically invisible. The ghillie suit he was wearing did that much. He edged further forward a few metres. It was nearing dusk, meaning only the sharpest of eyes would detect his movement now. He crawled forward a couple of meters further. Now, he could see human figures. He had found a position on slightly elevated ground, next to a couple of dry bushes, with a good view of the whole camp. Takemura pulled out his binoculars, and began to scan the area. The majority of the vehicles were parked around the edges of the camp. He saw the one that he remembered belonged to V - the Type 66 Quadra, modified. He must be here. Takemura kept scanning. He shifted his view over to the centre of camp, where several of the Aldecaldos were sitting round a large campfire. A number of the Aldecaldo children were there, and they were gathered round an older looking man in a stetson, one of the Aldecaldos that Takemura had observed earlier. He looked like a proper cowboy. The man was telling the children stories, that much was clear. Suddenly, Takemura was reminded of one of his only lasting memories of his biological family. His real family before Arasaka. He couldn’t have been much older than four, but he remembered his own grandmother telling him the tale of Visu the Woodsman. Alas, that was a time long since passed, and all of them were long gone now. He kept focus. The cowboy carried on with his story, but after a while, one of the Aldecaldos came up to interrupt him...

  
‘ _Can you_ please help me with something?’ asked the Aldecaldo.  
‘Can it wait, Joel?’ Cassidy replied, looking up at him. ‘We’ve only just sat down!’ He had been telling the kids a somewhat embellished tale of how in his youth, he had fended off a group of Wraiths, hunted down their leader and turned him into the sheriff of the small township they had been plaguing, all in the same day, and he was only just getting to the good bit of the story. He glanced back at the kids, eagerly awaiting the next part of the story, and then looked back at Joel, who looked similarly eager to get help with whatever it was he needed.  
‘Fine,’ he said, ‘but this better be quick. What is it you need?’  
‘Thanks Cassidy!’ he replied. ‘It’s just I’ve been trying to work out what’s up with the brakes on my car, and I know you’re prolly better with a wrench than me. It won’t take a second, promise!’  
Cassidy got up, and at this, the kids sighed.  
‘But Uncle Cassidy, what happens next to the big goofy one with the chrome legs and the shotgun?’ asked one of them.  
‘Don’t worry Shona,’ Cassidy said to her. ‘I’ll tell you all about how I rounded ‘em up and showed ‘em a bit of Old West justice, just gimme five minutes, okay? Sit tight now!’  
Cassidy got up, and followed them over to his car.

_Takemura_ had lost visual on the cowboy. He had gone behind one of the tents to where some of the cars were, evidently to help the fellow Aldecaldo with something. This did not concern him, however. He continued to scan the area, yet his main target did not appear to have emerged. He must be here somewhere. His car was there, the majority of the Aldecaldos seemed to be in camp. Unless…  
He took out his pocket notebook and went over the observations he had made. At the first camp he had discovered them at, they had twenty four vehicles in total. That included eleven Kaukaz heavy haulers, eighteen cars, four motorbikes and one Militech Basilisk, plus gear and equipment. When the Wraiths chased them out, the Basilisk got taken and they lost two cars and one heavy hauler, leaving them with only twenty vehicles. If everyone was at camp, that’s how many vehicles should be there. From where he was, he was just able to make out where all the vehicles were, if not quite identify where all the people were. He scanned over the whole campsite again, counting each of them individually. He found himself counting them out loud under his breath. ‘Ichi, ni, san… ju-nana, ju-hachi...’  
Eighteen, he concluded. Not everyone was there. Wait…  
A set of headlights approached the camp from out of the darkness. Nineteen. This was a Thorton Colby. It pulled into the camp, and two figures exited the vehicle. Neither of them were V. For a moment, he raked his brains to think which vehicle was missing, before it suddenly came to him. That ugly Thorton Mackinaw, he thought.

_Panam_ and V had just finished eating. The pierogies were good, and it was nice to sit indoors again. In spite of this, though, regardless of the fact that he had done everything he could to take her mind off the fact that he was dying and nothing could be done about it, he could still see the unrest, the sadness that now haunted her eyes, and he wanted nothing more than to make it go away. Panam had always been so full of life, and yet now, to see her like this, truly did break his heart. She had sat there with a half empty plate for the last five minutes now, and until now, had been blankly staring at the coasters. Then, she moved, getting up out of her seat. ‘I just need to catch some air,’ she said. V looked up as she went, but before he could respond she had walked off out the door. He really had never seen her like this. There was no way he wasn’t going after her. He got up, quickly paid for the food, and then moved his way through the patrons to the door. He walked out into the cold Arizona night air, and looking to his left, there she was, leaning over the railing and staring off into the distance. He walked over, and as he drew closer, he could see the streaks coming down from her eyes.  
‘This should be a really nice evening,’ she said quietly, without taking her gaze from the fading light on the horizon. ‘It would be, at least if I knew for sure that wasn’t gonna be one of the last.’ She trailed off, and then turned to look at him. ‘I don’t know what to do, V.’ At this, she lost control, and began sobbing. ‘I knew leading this family wouldn’t be easy, I just never thought I’d have to go through anything like this! First the Basilisk and the camp, and then… then thought of losing you.’  
‘Panam,’ V said, his own eyes turning red. ‘C’mere.’ He opened his arms to embrace her and she immediately stepped forward and fell into his embrace, wrapping her arms around his waist as tightly as she could, holding on like she would never let go of him again. They stood there, wrapped tightly in each other's arms for what felt like forever, and listened to the world go by around them. After a while, Panam spoke up again. ‘I’m such a gonk, aren’t I,’ she said.  
‘You were, to begin with,’ V responded. ‘And then I told you that I needed to blow some scientist named Hellman out the sky, and you said, “sure, I’ll help!” without even questioning it. And then, later on, you opened up to me, and I could tell that was the first time in a while you’d done that.’ He looked her deeply in the eyes, and pressed his forehead against hers.  
‘Panam, promise me one thing?’ he said, his voice becoming almost a whisper.  
‘Yeah?’  
‘No matter what happens, no matter if I manage to make it or not, don’t ever lose that fire.’ He paused for a moment, and then continued. ‘You know what the last thing Johnny said to me was, Panam?’  
‘What was it?’ she softly asked.  
‘He told me never to stop fighting... Though I feel like those words rang truer than ever today. Know why?’ He gave pause for a moment, before continuing. ‘You’ve kept me going Panam, you and the Aldecaldos. Without you, the family, who would I be? Just another merc at the afterlife? Sure, maybe I’d be good at it. Maybe I’d even make it big there. But you know what? none of that would matter, ‘cause I’d be as good as alone at the end of it. But out here? I’ve actually got something to care about. I’ve got you. I’ve got a family like nothing I ever dreamt I’d have since leavin’ the Bakkers. Promise me that you’ll never lose that fire, Panam, and I promise you I’ll never stop fighting.’  
Panam didn’t need any words to respond to this. She felt the warmth of his breath, took in his scent, felt the touch of his skin, and it was intoxicating. Slowly, the gap between their lips closed, and they shared a kiss for what felt like a lifetime.  
But before it could last a lifetime, V pulled back, but did not break eye contact with her for one moment. ‘Can see some of that fire comin’ back already,’ he said, with a smile now cracking across his face.  
‘You know me far too well already,’ Panam said, herself now smiling properly for the first time that day. V stole a quick glance over towards the Taphouse entrance, and then back at her. He could hear the music from within, and it almost called out to the both of them.  
‘Panam?’ V said gently. ‘If I don’t make it, I don’t wanna die knowing I never got the chance to dance with you.’ He held out his hand to her. ‘Will you join me?’  
Panam put her palm against his, and they locked their fingers together. ‘Of course, V,’ she said. ‘I think I will always say yes to you.’

_‘Cassidy,_ I’ll get in the driver's seat and test the brakes out. Could you get underneath and tell me if there’s anything creaking that shouldn’t be while I do that?’ Joel said.  
‘You really needed me to do this?’ Cassidy replied.  
‘Sorry, Cassidy, it’s just everyone else was busy, and…’  
‘It’s alright, kid,’ he interrupted. He removed his Stetson and placed it on the hood, before going prone and crawling underneath where the engine block was. Joel got into the driver's seat, and made ready to test out the brakes.  
‘Go on, test away,’ Cassidy called out. Joel engaged the brake pedal a few times, and Cassidy was able to hear the creaking.  
‘Try once more,’ said Cassidy. Joel put his foot down again. ‘Left,’ Cassidy then called. Sure enough, the creaking was coming from the front left wheel. Cassidy got out from underneath the car, and moved over to look inside the wheel arch. ‘Just need to lubricate your calipers more,’ he said, still looking. ‘If the problem persists, come to me, and then…’ Cassidy stopped.  
‘What’s wrong? Called Joel. In response to this, Cassidy simply put his arm up. It looked as if he had seen something. At that moment, the sound of another car pulled into camp, which both of them could tell was Mitch’s car without even looking.  
‘What is it?’ Joel asked again. Cassidy looked at him.  
‘Joel,’ said Cassidy, go back to whatever you were doing. Forget the car, find whatever you were doing before, and go back to it.’  
‘But… Cassidy,’ Joel protested. Cassidy got up, and looked him squarely in the eyes.  
‘Joel,’ he said, his tone growing serious. ‘Go back to whatever you were doing before you started with the car, and don’t argue.’  
Joel did not know how to respond to this. He simply backed away, and went off to do whatever he was doing earlier. Cassidy knew better than to tamper with the device he had found underneath the wheel arch, and instead left the car as it was, heading off to go and speak to Mitch and Carol. He walked over to where Mitch had parked up as the both of them were getting out, and addressed them quickly.  
‘Mitch, Carol,’ he said. ‘I need to talk with you where there won’t be prying ears. Or eyes.’ He quickly looked around him, looking beyond the bounds of the camp into the darkness.  
‘Gonna tell us what this is about at all?’ Mitch said. Don’t even wanna hear about what happened in town?’  
‘That can wait,’ he replied. ‘Not here, though. Away from prying ears. Service tent, let’s go.’  
Before either Mitch or Carol could object, Cassidy was leading them over to the tent. They walked into the tent, and there was no one else nearby. Cassidy then closed the flaps, and switched off any terminals that were active, before doing a quick sweep for bugs. When he had finished, he turned to the pair.  
‘Jeez, never seen you this paranoid before, what’s gotten into you?’ asked Mitch.  
‘Keep your voice low,’ Cassidy said. ‘Okay Mitch, you wanna know what I found earlier? Underneath Joel’s car?’  
Mitch stared at him blankly.  
‘A goddamn tracker,’ Cassidy said. ‘Know what that means? Means we’re being hunted.’  
‘You’re sure it was a tracker, yeah?’ Carol cut in.  
‘I know what one looks like,’ Cassidy said. ‘Former cop, remember?’  
‘Course,’ said Mitch. But who…’  
‘I dunno,’ Cassidy said, cutting him off. ‘That’s what worries me.’  
‘So what do you suggest we do?’ Mitch responded.  
‘I suggest we do a full sweep of the area around the camp, check there’s nothin’ hidin’ in the shadows. But I don’t want anyone to know what we’ve found, start gettin’ panicked. Let the lookouts know so they know what we’re up to, but no one else. Last thing we need is anyone blabbing what we’ve found to the wrong people.’

_Perhaps_ V was there somewhere, in one of the tents maybe? Just because the vehicle that he recognised as belonging to Panam was gone, didn’t necessarily mean he was as well, even if they were close. He kept scanning. As he did so, he noticed the cowboy come out from behind the tent where the vehicles were, and approach the two Aldecaldos who had just got back. They had a brief exchange, and then appeared to follow the cowboy into one of the tents. They were obviously having an important conversation, but could not have been in there for much longer than five minutes. However, after they finally emerged, the thought started to dawn on Takemura. The cowboy must have gone round the back in the first place to help look at one of the vehicles. He remembered his observations. The vehicle he put the tracker on must have been round there.  
‘Kuso,’ he muttered to himself.

_She was_ a bit awkward at first. The times she got to do anything like this were indeed rare, and when she had, she had never felt this nervous. However, before long, she found herself able to move with the music - to move in time with V.  
‘You got much experience with this kind of thing yourself?’ Panam asked him.  
‘The occasional barn dance back when I rode with the Bakkers,’ he said, before changing the direction of his footwork. ‘Went solo too, in some of the NC nightclubs.’ The tempo of the music quickened, and he pulled her in close for a moment. ‘Never felt this good, though!’  
All of a sudden she bought her face close to his. ‘Sweet talker,’ she said, before pulling away and surprising him with a pirouette.  
‘Got the moves after all,’ he said in response. Both of them felt the energy increase with every step, and there in that moment, the world outside of the taphouse, along with its problems, ceased to exist.

_Cassidy_ passed through the center of camp, his hand on his holstered revolver, prepared to take on whatever he might encounter. Carol was to take the Northwest, Mitch the East, and himself the South. As he was on his way, all of a sudden, the kids he was with earlier ran up to him.  
‘Uncle Cassidy! Uncle Cassidy!’ they pleaded. ‘You were gonna finish the story!’  
‘Look kids… tomorrow night. I’ll make it up to you, I promise.’ Cassidy heard them sigh and huff, and he felt bad, but he could not let that get to him, not now. They scampered off, and Cassidy continued towards the camp's outer limits.  
‘Where ya off to, Cassidy?’ said one of the more portly Aldecaldos, looking up at him from his chair.  
‘Don’t worry Jake, not about to run off or anything, just gotta take a leak is all.’ Cassidy’s reply was as cool and collected as anything, despite how tense he felt.  
‘Chemical toilets not good enough for ya?’ Jake jokingly asked.  
‘Sometimes I like to go au naturale,’ he sarcastically replied. ‘Besides, at least the open desert doesn’t stink of last night’s dinner.’ Cassidy continued past the last line of tents, and out into the darkness of the night, bringing his revolver ready as he went.

_The cowboy_ was headed right in his direction, and he froze. He may have looked old, but despite this, Takemura could tell that he was still sharp as a flint, and any sudden movement could mean detection. Detection meant death. There was no other option for it. He did not wish to cause collateral, but in this situation he could see little alternative. The cowboy was just short of a hundred meters away, and he was getting closer with every step. The rifle was loaded and ready to fire. All Takemura had to do was disengage the safety, aim, and pull the trigger. The cowboy moved closer. Carefully, Takemura pulled the rifle into his shoulder, making sure to make no sudden sound or movements. He aimed down the smart scope, and locked onto his target. The cowboy continued advancing towards him. Seventy-five meters and counting. Takemura ran his thumb across the side of the rifle to find the safety catch, before carefully disengaging it. Seventy. Target was fully locked on. Sixty-five. He brought his hand back to the pistol grip, placed his finger on the trigger, took a deep breath, and…

_Cassidy_ moved further into the darkness, but all of a sudden was stopped when he heard Mitch calling.  
‘Cassidy!’  
‘Yeah?’ he called out in response, turning back towards the direction that he heard Mitch’s voice come from.  
‘Come over here,’ replied Mitch.  
‘What’s up?’  
‘Come see for yourself.’ Cassidy cautiously started moving in Mitch’s direction, but as he went, he found himself glancing back. He could have sworn he saw something next to those bushes…

_Takemura_ breathed a quiet sigh of relief. He ran through everything in his head. Assessment: even if V is here, which looks increasingly unlikely, risk is too high. Time to abort. After doing one last scan to check that no one was looking for movement in his direction, Takemura packed up what little gear he had brought, and silently vacated his position before disappearing off into the night.

_Cassidy_ caught up with Mitch. ‘What is it?’ he said.  
‘Take a look,’ replied Mitch, before handing him a small piece of paper with something written on it. Cassidy unfolded the paper, and began reading;

_Hey_

_You got the info I requested? When you’re ready, drop it off at the place I specified. Try not to keep me waiting._

_Yours, Mack._

‘Shit,’ Cassidy said out loud.  
‘Yep,’ Mitch replied. ‘An informant among us. As if we weren’t in enough shit already.’

_Some time later_   
_The Rifle Taphouse_

After slow dancing for as long as they could manage, the evening for V and Panam was finally starting to wind down.  
‘Think after everything over the past couple of days, I’m more than ready for a looong rest,’ said Panam.  
‘Right there with you,’ replied V. ‘Be nice to sleep in an actual bed for once.’  
‘Could not agree more,’ she said back.  
‘I’ll go and get someone to show us to the room now if you like.’  
‘Sure, V. I’d like that.’ With this, V walked over to the bar, and requested that the two of them be shown to their room. Within five minutes, they had been shown the room, and assured the attendant that there was no need for them to be disturbed. V dropped onto the bed, and Panam joined him as we did so. The room was hardly a corpo suite, but it definitely beat Sunset Motel. V turned his head over to Panam.  
‘So here we are, you finally agreed to a double!’ V joked.  
Panam chuckled. ‘You knew it was only gonna be a matter of time,’ she said. They both lay there for some time, looking up at the ceiling. They lay there, enjoying the peaceful bliss of each other's company for several minutes, until eventually Panam rolled over to face V.  
‘V?’ she said, gazing at him with the same face that he remembered from the night before the raid. ‘Thank you for this. I was so worried, well, about everything, but being able to forget about that just for an evening? It was preem. I’m so glad you came to me to blow up that AV all those weeks ago. Best thing that happened to me in a long time.’  
V turned his head to face her again. ‘I meant every bit of what I said earlier. You mean the world to me, really.’ Scooching over, he kissed her gently on the forehead. ‘Goodnight, Panam,’ he whispered.  
‘Goodnight, V,’ she replied.


	2. Dust

_9.30am  
_ _The Rifle, Tucson  
_ _32 days since Mikoshi_

V opened his eyes. Morning sunlight poured in through the window, and warmed his face as he stirred. He had slept more soundly that night than he had in weeks, perhaps due to having slept on a proper bed, or perhaps due to the fact that in spite of the fact that he was still dying, he had been able to cheer Panam up, if only for a few hours.  
_Panam_. He heard the humming from the shower, and it filled him with more warmth than the Arizona sun ever could. V rubbed his eyes, and began to gradually prop himself up, before eventually pulling himself to the edge of the bed, ready to stand. Slowly, he then began standing, although as he did so, he felt the room begin to spin, and felt the faint nausea. It was not as bad as yesterday, but he knew this would only continue. He remembered what Travis said, about it starting with dizziness, then seizures, and then…  
V put the thoughts out of his mind. He was determined to make today better than the past couple had been, if not for his sake then for Panam and the Aldecaldos. The noise of the shower kept going, and V walked towards the bathroom door, reaching out to grab the handle. He opened the door, and as he went through, there she was, the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, and completely naked before him. He stopped for a moment, admiring the curves of her body as she washed herself.   
‘You just gonna stand there gawping, or are you gonna join me?’ she said playfully.   
‘Course,’ V replied, grinning uncontrollably. He slipped off what he was wearing, and stepped into the shower to join her. She turned around to face him, and moved her hands up his body, before placing them on his shoulders. V put his arms around her waist, and once again, without either of them thinking, their lips connected.   
‘Morning,’ V said afterwards.   
‘Morning,’ Panam said back, smiling at him. ‘Sleep better?’  
‘You could say so,’ he replied, picking up the shampoo. ‘Bed beats a roll mat on the desert floor, certainly, but honestly? I’d rather put up with the discomfort than not have you by my side.’ He caressed the side of her head, and she smiled coyly back at him, before stepping out of the shower and reaching for the towel. He showered for a couple of minutes more, but as he stepped out, he felt another sudden bout of lightheadedness, until…

  
  
  
  
  
  


‘...V?’ he heard her say in the concerned tone of voice he had come to recognise all too well. His vision returned, and the wide eyed look Panam gave him matched her tone.   
‘You still with me V?’  
V blinked a couple of times, and fixed his gaze on her, and he began to remember where he was again. Panam was still wrapped in a towel, with her hand rested on his shoulder. He was still standing, but had managed to black out on the spot; lose all sensation for a moment.  
‘Yeah,’ he quietly replied, ‘I think so.’  
‘Did you need to lie down for a little while longer?’ Panam said.   
‘I think… I think I’m gonna be okay, thanks… maybe I’ll be better after some breakfast.’  
‘Sure, of course,’ she replied. ‘Just… take it easy, okay? And let me know if you feel like keeling over.’   
‘I’ll try,’ said V.  
‘Also,’ said Panam as she knelt down to pick V’s pants off the floor before handing them to him, ‘should probably get dressed first. Wouldn’t want a repeat of what happened after our first run in the Basilisk, would we now?’  
‘Right,’ V said. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


_10am  
  
_

Pancakes. Tasty, classic, high calorie, all American - the two of them gobbled theirs down at an impressive rate. They sat in the same seats in the dining area that they had the night before, although were clearly in better spirits than they were that evening.  
‘You’ve really not regretted being stuck here overnight one bit, have you,’ V said between bites.   
Panam tried to respond, but her voice was muffled by a mouth full of pancakes. She swallowed, and was then able to reply. ‘Clearly.’ She paused for a moment, and continued. ‘I love the family dearly and all, it’s just sometimes I need time away, a break, to remember…’  
‘To remember how much you truly appreciate them,’ said V, cutting in. ‘Like any family.’  
‘Amen to that,’ Panam replied with a slight chuckle.   
‘Think they managed alright without you?’ V said, before shovelling another load of pancake batter into his mouth.   
‘They’re big kids,’ Panam replied. ‘I trust ‘em not to get in trouble for one night at least.’ She then finished up the last of her pancakes and put her fork down, before speaking up again. ‘Seem to have really worked up an appetite over the last few days, haven’t I.’  
‘Pierogies last night clearly weren’t enough for you!’ V said.   
‘Yeah,’ she said back. ‘My mind was in a hundred different places yesterday, and in that moment not one of ‘em was food. But then ya sweet talked me, and told me not to worry, and I guess that just worked.’  
‘Guess that’s just somethin’ I’m good at,’ remarked V, grinning.   
‘That, and a bunch of other things,’ remarked Panam. ‘Like being a trouble magnet.’ She smirked. ‘But I wouldn’t have it any other way.’   
‘Ha!’ V replied, finishing his last bite and setting down his cutlery. ‘That’s the only reason you took interest in me in the first place, isn’t it.’  
‘Maybe a little,’ Panam said, ‘but then I realised you were someone that cares. I mean, I remember when you first told me about the biochip, and thinking about how crazy it all was. And then later on I remember thinkin’; fuck! This guy’s been comin’ out to help me in the desert with my stupid family feud, all the while the clock’s tickin’ down, when he had every right to ignore me and look a way to save his own goddamn life!’ At that point, she stood up, and V wasn’t sure what she might do, but before he could react, she leant over the table, grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him in for a kiss. She then let him go, and sat back down. ‘Sorry to embarrass you like that V, I just felt like I needed to.’  
‘I’m not complainin’, said V, his cheeks now red.   
Panam then looked directly at him. ‘We will get you fixed, V,’ she said.   
‘Got no idea how good it is to hear you say that,’ V replied, reaching out and clasping his hands around hers. They gazed at each other for a few moments, but this was interrupted by a text to Panam’s phone. Moving her hand away, she reached to pull out her phone, and viewed the text;  
  
**THORN SHOULD BE DONE BY THIS AFTERNOON, PARTS ARRIVED THIS MORNING AND WILL TAKE A FEW HOURS TO INSTALL  
****-TEDDY**

‘Dammit,’ said Panam. ‘Ah well, looks like we’re gonna be here for a few more hours.’  
‘This place isn’t so bad,’ V responded. ‘For once, it means we’re not in a rush until then.’  
‘And what do you suggest we do in the meantime?’ Panam said back.   
‘You tell me,’ he replied. ‘I picked this place, think it’s your turn to decide what we get up to until then.’   
‘Ha, you really think I should choose how to kill the next few hours?’   
  
In response to this, V sat there in silence, looking at her.

‘Fine,’ she continued. ‘I have an idea. Follow me, I think I’ve seen enough of this place now.’ She got some eddies out and put them on the table to tip, before abruptly standing up.   
‘Gonna tell me where we’re going first?’ asked V.  
‘Nope,’ she replied. She then grabbed him by the hand, and led him out of the restaurant. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


_10.45am  
_ _Somewhere in Tucson_

The two of them had walked through the backstreets of Tucson for what felt like ages. In reality, it had only been about half an hour, but the Southwest sun made it feel that much longer. Panam and V were both carrying their jackets at this point, but as they turned another corner, it became apparent that they were nearly at wherever she was leading him. In front of them was a chain linked security fence, covered in faded, garish posters and other items of junk, and beyond that was a large, squat building of two stories, boasting an exterior of only a few windows spread out over flat, concrete walls.   
‘The Kress Memorial High School,’ Panam announced to V. ‘Must’ve closed down some years ago, looks like.’  
‘Well this just creates even more questions,’ he said, scratching his head. ‘Why exactly are we here?’  
‘You’ll see,’ Panam replied. She walked over to the fence, climbed up onto a dumpster that was next to it, and then vaulted over the top, before turning back to look at him from the other side, as if to say, ‘well what are you waiting for?’  
‘Should we really be doing this?’ V asked.   
‘Did you ask yourself that before we stole the Basilisk?’ Panam replied.  
‘At least then I knew what I was going into,’ he retorted.   
‘Oh quit whining, not like the place is gonna be crawling with Militech soldiers.’   
She turned back around, and started walking towards the school. She then glanced back at him over her shoulder briefly. ‘You coming, or what?’   
V rolled his eyes, climbed up onto the dumpster and then vaulted the fence himself. He landed on the dusty concrete on the other side, and quickly caught up with Panam. She closed distance with the building, and skirted along the outer wall for a few yards, evidently looking for a way in.   
‘Don’t think it might be dangerous in there?’ V said, following.  
‘You kidding?’ exclaimed Panam. ‘Not like any gangoons are gonna be takin’ an interest in this place anymore, they've got better places to occupy. worst we’ll see might be some lost junkie.’   
She continued along the wall a little way further, until she reached the next window. ‘Aha, look!’  
The glass in the window pane was completely shattered, and the boards covering the opening were flimsy and decrepit.   
‘Help me with this, would you?’ she said to V, grabbing one end of the largest board covering the window.  
Not bothering to object this time, V grabbed the other end, and they both pulled as hard as they could to prize out the nails holding it in place. It did not take much effort, and soon enough the board was free of the window, and as the pair of them dropped it, the wood hit the concrete paving with a thud. They could both clearly see inside now. It was dark, but V poked his head in, and his eyes adjusted.   
‘Classroom,’ he said.   
‘Need a leg up?’  
‘Sure.’   
Panam put her hands out for V, and he used them to mantle his way in through the window.  
‘Thanks,’ he said back, before helping her in. They were both in the classroom now, and it was strangely peaceful. Panam often thought that about abandoned places; the railroad control tower, the hut out in the middle of the badlands… this was no different. The two of them took in their new surroundings, and observed what they could see. The light pouring through the window they had used to enter cast rays which cut through the darkness, accentuated by the dust in the air that had just been stirred up for the first time in years. They looked around the room. A calendar on the wall, now dog eared and faded, showed June 2064 on it, and probably hadn’t been touched since then. The desks were caked in thick dust, some with stationary still left on them, and there was even an old whiteboard which still had some equations on, although neither V nor Panam could make these out after what the years had done. Slowly, V walked up to the teachers desk, gently brushing dust off desks as he passed them, and when he got to the front of the classroom he turned back to face Panam. There was still an old pair of glasses on the front desk, and he picked them up, blowing some of the dust off the lenses as he did so. He brought the glasses up to his face, and then put them on in just such a way that they rested on the tip of his nose. He then looked at Panam.   
‘So then, class,’ he started, putting on a ridiculous, deep sounding voice. ‘Who’s done their homework about the great fall of the evil Arasaka empire?’  
Panam looked back at him, and slowly moved down to sit at one of the desks whilst not breaking eye contact, clearly playing along. She then raised her hand.   
‘Palmer,’ V said.  
‘Well, Mr. V,’ she replied, ‘I’m afraid my dog ate all my homework, but I can tell you about the brave souls that did it. And I can also tell you all about the queen who led her entire kingdom to battle, all because she’d fallen for some mad prince who needed to get into their castle and lift a terrible curse they placed upon him!’ She paused for a moment, and her tone became mellow. ‘And now all that queen wishes is that she could have lifted the curse properly, if only to spend the rest of her life with the prince.’   
With that, V gently lifted the glasses from his face, still not breaking eye contact once. ‘You left out the part where the queen never gives up hope, because she is the strongest and most able leader in all the land, despite what she sometimes tells herself.’   
‘And the prince was able to keep her going through it all,’ Panam said back. She smiled as she looked back at him. ‘Come on V, let’s keep moving, I still haven’t shown you what I wanted to.’   
Panam got up, and V followed. She switched on a flashlight, and they made their way to the classroom door, and walked out into a vast, dark hallway, which was both peaceful and eerie. V followed Panam as she turned left down the corridor, and they walked past the rows and rows of lockers in complete silence, needing to use torchlight to guide them through the darkness. As they continued, V found himself reminded of Laguna Bend, and wondered if he could almost hear the ghostly sound of a school bell here too, accompanied by the sounds of kids rushing to class.   
‘I wonder why this place closed down, why it became so empty,’ he said quietly.   
‘Simple urban decay,’ she replied, shining her flashlight further down the darkness of the corridor. ‘Fewer and fewer people wanted to stay put here. Many of them moved to Night City, and other places. Some became nomads. This is just what’s left.’  
‘Wait, were you,’ V said, but Panam cut him off.   
‘From here? No, I’ve spent pretty much my whole life on the road. But close, though.’   
They continued on further, before they reached an alcove that was towards the end of the hallway. Panam stopped, and shone her flashlight at it.   
‘Look,’ she said. ‘It’s still here.’   
The light picked up what appeared to be a display cabinet, and although the glass had shattered, the relics inside were still there; old sports trophies, jerseys, photographs…

Panam moved closer to the cabinet, and pointed at one of the photos. It depicted what must have been the school baseball team at one point, and she pointed out one of the guys in particular. He had brown skin, a handsome face, and stood right in the middle of the photo, smiling in a proud yet dignified way that he somehow felt intimately familiar with.   
‘Wait, is that…’  
V trailed off. Panam shone the flashlight lower down, and on the bottom shelf was a synthleather bound book. She picked it up, and blew off some of the dust.   
‘Class of 2043,’ V said, reading what was printed on the cover. Panam opened up the yearbook, and flicked through it for a few moments, before landing on the page she wanted.   
‘Here,’ she said, pointing out what looked to be the same face that he saw in the other photograph. Yes, the face did seem oddly familiar.   
‘Michael A Palmer,’ V read. ‘Never back down.’  
‘Best dad a girl could ask for, at least from what few memories I have of him,’ Panam said.   
‘Can I ask what happened?’   
‘Sure,’ she said. ‘Mom died not long after I was born, but dad raised me for long enough that he was able to teach me a thing or two. He loved machines; cars, airplanes as well. Once, he went right out into the middle of the Arizona boneyard to scavenge for parts, and took me with him! He was a mechanic after all. Hell, sometimes I wonder if he only picked my name because he saw it written on the tail of one of those old airplane relics from the last century. Naturally, all of that was just big metal toys, and sometimes he’d let me play with some of the leftovers.’   
‘He gave you scrap metal to play with?’ V said, sounding slightly surprised.  
‘Don’t worry, he made sure I didn’t swallow any batteries or start drinking the CHOOH2!’ Panam said back. ‘Simpler times. I’d be lying if I said there weren’t moments when I wished I’d known him for longer. But alas, my family is the Aldecaldos, and has been for a long time. I don’t think now I’d have it any other way.’  
‘I see,' V said. 'So what became of him eventually?’   
‘There was a robbery,’ Panam said. ‘I was only four years old at the time, but it happened at a gas station, way out in the desert. Dad left me in the car, and went in. And then some goons followed, and I think even back when I was that young I could see that they were packin’ iron. I heard the gunshots, and I had no idea what was happenin’...’

‘You don’t have to go on,’ V said.  
‘It’s fine, V, honestly. This was over twenty years ago now.’   
She paused briefly, then continued. ‘It was over in minutes. Someone must’ve radioed for help though, because before I know it, bunch of nomads comes rollin’ in, led by this one guy with long, grubby black hair who looks like he’s barely out of high school.’  
‘Saul,’ said V.   
‘Right,’ Panam replied. ‘Anyway, he leads his guys in there, but it’s already too late. Cashier must’ve had an iron of his own, but wasn’t bankin’ on there being more than one of em’. Shootout happened, and there were some survivors, but as you can probably guess, dad’s not one of em. So Saul comes back out, and only then does he find me in the back of Dad’s car, all scared and confused. He quickly puts two and two together, realising that none of the survivors got kids, and so he lifts me out of the car, but there’s not a lot he can do in that moment. Cops arrived like an hour later, and did a fat lot of good to help. Far as I know, no one else would’ve taken me in, and Saul couldn’t find anywhere to get rid of me, so, yeah... that’s kinda how I ended up with the Aldecaldos.’  
‘I appreciate that you shared that with me,’ V said, putting his hand on her shoulder.   
‘Honestly, that’s the first time I’ve cast my mind back that far in a long time,’ Panam replied. ‘I remember crying for days after it happened. I was confused at first, and then angry. But after a while, when the nomads took me in, I came to really like the campfires, the excitement, the new family I had found. This was somewhere I fit right in. After that, I just sorta learned to live past the trauma, and be glad for what I now had.’   
She paused again, before shining the flashlight at some of the other artifacts, and then turned back to V. ‘I guess that’s all I really wanted to show you. Another little slice of who I am and where I fit. Perhaps it was for me as much as anything. I think I just wanted one more reminder of him for closure. I only knew where to come in the first place because one of the few things Dad left me was a copy of this same yearbook.’   
Panam set it down, placing it back where it was. ‘Perhaps it’s a good job we got stuck here waiting for the car, if only…’  
She was interrupted by a sudden sound that came from the far end of the hallway. There was a loud thud, followed by the creek of a door, and then… footsteps.  
‘Shit,’ uttered Panam in a frantic whisper, before switching off the flashlight. ‘This way!’  
She grabbed V’s hand, and the two of them rushed over to a large set of doors at the end of the hallway they were closest to. They quickly made their way through the double doors, and now found themselves in what appeared to be the main hall. Though it was still dark, there was just enough light making its way through small, high up windows for them to make out the shape of the room, and they could tell that right at the front of the room was a large, main stage. They could hear the footsteps draw closer. A few seconds later, a voice called out from where the source of the footsteps was.

‘Wh...wh...who’s that?’ the man’s voice shouted, sounding deranged and disorientated. He drew closer.

‘Umm… hide,’ said Panam.  
‘No shit,’ said V. He looked around the hall briefly. ‘Stage.’   
V and Panam quickly scurried over to where the stage was, went down prone, and then slid underneath.   
‘Who’s th...th...there?’ the man shouted from down the corridor. ‘This is m...m...my place!’ 

The two of them had found a tight spot underneath the stage, where they could only just see out. V sat there in the darkness, staying as still as he could, and as he looked out of the gap he seemed to notice that Panam was instinctively clutching his arm so tightly that he could barely move it. He didn’t mind, though. The man was at the door now, and it creaked open as he walked through. Panam grasped her revolver, staring anxiously out of the opening.  
‘Just say the word,’ she whispered to V.  
‘Panam,’ V whispered back. ‘Rather not get any blood on our hands at least today. If he sees us, we run for it.’   
‘Of course, sorry,’ Panam replied. As she put the gun away, the man continued moving closer, to the point where they were able to get a good look at him. He had long, scraggly hair with a matching beard, visible cyberware, and wore the tattered remains of a dress shirt and what may once have been neatly pressed pants. He also carried a shotgun, and as he paced around the hall in a slow, slightly uncoordinated fashion, he looked around erratically.   
‘Know you’re here, corpocunts!’ he shouted. ‘Trying to t...t...turf me out of this place!’   
He drew closer to the stage, and V and Panam watched his legs go by as he walked right past the opening. V instinctively held his breath, and so did Panam. Fortunately though, the man went past the opening without investigating. He continued patrolling the hall, and was now turning back towards the doors. At that, V and Panam quietly breathed a sigh of relief. 

And then Panam’s holophone went off. 

‘Shit!’ she exclaimed, trying to keep her voice a whisper. It was no use. The sound of her phone cut straight through the silence, and she cursed again. It was Teddy. She quickly rejected the call, but it was too late. V could see that the man had heard the noise, and was now heading straight back towards the stage, looking directly at the opening.   
‘No use hidin’ now!’ he yelled.   
‘Let’s move!’ V said quickly.  
Both of them sprung to action, and rapidly began crawling for the nearest way out of their hiding place possible. They slipped back out from under the stage, and quickly made for the doors again. The man noticed them as they did so, and leveled off his shotgun at them. He fired off a shot, but missed as they managed to make it through the double doors.   
‘Panam, help me pull this locker over!’ V said, clearly planning to use one of the lockers in the corridor as a makeshift barricade. The steel locker was heavy, but with their combined effort, they were able to bring it down so it blocked the door, and it landed against the other row of lockers with a heavy metal clang. Panam flicked the flashlight back on, and looked at V.   
‘Think that’ll hold him?’ she asked.   
V opened his mouth to speak, but before he could say anything, a loud bang exploded through the door, and V watched as crimson exploded from Panam’s shoulder.  
‘Shit!’ she yelled, wincing in pain and moving her hand to clutch her shoulder. ‘Keep moving, I’ll be okay.’   
The two of them took off down the corridor.  
‘Sure about that?’ V asked, not stopping for a moment.   
‘You sound like my Dad,’ Panam said back. They kept running until they reached a door which they could see daylight through.   
‘Through here!’ she said. Before V could react, she then ran at the door, delivering a swift kick that forced open the door and shattered the boards that covered it the other side. Daylight now flooded back in, and V followed Panam back into the outdoor air. As he passed the threshold, he was reminded of how bright it was, and he felt his head start to spin. Panam stood for a moment, taking in her new surroundings, but then quickly turned back to V.   
‘Jeez, V, are you alright?’  
He was clutching his temple, and looked like he might be about to pass out. However, he quickly recovered, before looking back at her.  
‘I’m fine,’ he said, and then looked at her arm. ‘it’s you we should be worryin’ about!’  
‘I’ll live,’ she said. ‘Come on, V, we should get moving before that guy comes after us again. Think you can make it over to those crowd stands without passing out?’  
She pointed to an area ahead that looked like it may have once been the school sports ground, with the crowd stands at the near end.   
‘I’ll live,’ V sarcastically replied. ‘Let’s go.’  
They made their way over to the stands, and when they got close, they found a couple of seats up in the middle rows that hadn’t been either completely vandalized or otherwise destroyed by time. Upon reaching them, Panam planted her rear firmly, and V followed suit.   
‘Don’t think he’ll follow us out here do you?’ Panam said.   
V replied. ‘Guy like that, go out into daylight? I wouldn’t count on it.’   
He stopped for a moment, and looked over the ground that was once the sports field, now dried out and covered in garbage. He then looked back at her.  
‘Panam,’ he said. ‘Please let me take a look at your arm.’  
‘It’s fine,’ she replied. ‘Honestly.’   
V looked her squarely in the eyes. ‘Panam…’  
‘Fine,’ she said. Slowly, she took off her jacket, and V helped her. She winced slightly as V helped remove the left sleeve, and as it came off, V could clearly tell that the buckshot had badly messed up her shoulder, and a trickle of now coagulated blood had found its way down her arm.   
‘Jesus,’ V said. ‘Okay, nothin a bit of first aid can’t help with.’  
He reached for his belt, and got out a small first aid kit.   
‘How bad is it?’ Panam nervously asked.  
‘Nothing you can’t manage,’ V said back. ‘Here, take this.’  
V handed her a Maxdoc inhaler, and she quickly grabbed it and took a puff.   
‘Told me I was a trouble magnet earlier, didn’t you?’ V said to her gently, smirking slightly as he unravelled a length of bandage.  
She chuckled slightly, and he then opened up some antiseptic wipes, bringing one up to her shoulder.  
‘Try to hold still, this might sting a little,’ he said to her, before dabbing the area around the wound with a wipe.   
‘Should recommend you to Trauma Team,’ Panam said between the winces in pain. V smiled slightly, but did not say anything as he put down the wipe and prepped the bandage. Carefully, he brought the bandage up, and placed the gauze pad over the wound. Panam lifted her arm up just enough for V to get the bandage under, and she moved her other hand to keep the pad in place as V wrapped the bandage around her arm. He tied it off, and looked her in the eyes again.   
‘You’re lucky I insisted on seeing to that,’ V said. ‘Could’ve got infected, or who knows what else!’  
‘Oh V,’ Panam said, looking intently back at him, ‘I’m just lucky I found you in general.’   
‘Panam,’ V said back, ‘flattery will get you nowhere.’ He paused again, reading the look that Panam gave him in response to this.   
‘That’s a lie,’ he continued. ‘It’ll always be that much sweeter coming from you.’  
‘Good,’ Panam replied, ‘because I don’t ever plan to stop.’ 

Both of them sat there for a moment, looking at each other, and then out over the garbage littered sports field.   
‘Should really check my holo to see what Teddy wanted,’ said Panam, breaking the brief silence. ‘Car’s probably ready.’  
‘Thought he said it wouldn’t be ‘til the afternoon?’ V said.  
‘Could’ve got it done early,’ replied Panam. She then opened up her phone, and viewed the text messages.  
‘Yep,’ she confirmed.   
‘Wanna head out yet, or…’  
‘Nah,’ Panam said, interrupting V. ‘Let’s just sit a while longer.’  
‘Sure,’ V replied, ‘you’re the boss.’   
  
There was another brief lull, before V spoke up again.   
‘Say, who do you think that guy in there was exactly?’ he asked.  
‘Got no idea, honestly!’ Panam replied. ‘Could’ve even been one of the teachers.’  
‘After all these years, you think?’ said V.  
‘It’s possible, sure. Guy could’ve fallen on hard times, maybe lost his home. Eventually, he turns to narcotics, and he chooses one of the few places that’s familiar to squat.’   
‘Makes sense,’ V said. For a moment, Panam looked off into the distance, but then turned back to him. She once again looked him deeply in the eyes, and then spoke up.  
‘V… I’m just gonna say it… what is your real name?’  
V paused for a few seconds before he answered, looking slightly surprised by the question.  
‘Does it matter?’ he replied.  
‘Matters to me,’ she said back. ‘Every day I learn a little more about you, and after everything I’ve learned I’ve managed to not run for the hills so much as once. But yet I feel like such a gonk to have not even asked you in any detail who you were before we met, before you came to NC.’  
‘It’s okay, Panam, really,’ V replied, before continuing. ‘Well, if you must know, my name is Vincent.’  
Okay then, Vincent,’ Panam said, moving slightly closer to him. ‘I’m glad that I met you. Do tell me more?’  
‘If you insist,’ V said back. ‘Very well. I was born in 2049, and the first time I properly set up in Night City was after I smuggled that Iguana that I once mentioned. Before then, I spent my whole life on the road. Don’t even remember who my original parents were, Bakkers just sorta… found me. And they never really told me what the circumstances were either, all I remember being told is that when they picked me up the only thing I had was a name tag that just said “Vincent” and nothing else.’  
‘So do you not like that name?’ Panam asked.  
‘It’s not that I don’t like it,’ V said, pausing briefly before continuing. ‘It’s just it reminds me of all the problems I left with the Bakkers. The fights over nothing, the sense of slowly losing your identity… main reason I went to NC in the first place was for a fresh start, to forget about all that, and…’

He trailed off. 

‘What was it you were gonna say?’ Panam asked.   
‘I was just thinkin’,’ V continued. ‘It’s funny… first time I properly talked about my past, at least in actual detail, I’d snuck into a construction site with this exiled Arasaka agent. Takemura, his name was.’  
‘Wait, what?’ Panam exclaimed, sounding surprised yet intrigued.   
‘What’s even crazier is he was the former bodyguard of Saburo Arasaka himself,’ V continued, watching the disbelief on Panam’s face continue to grow. ‘So anyway, we’re on this construction site, doing reconnaissance of this Arasaka compound, ‘cause that’s where the floats were being kept for that Dashi Parade, remember?’  
Panam nodded. ‘Yeah, I remember. You were involved in Hanako’s kidnapping, weren’t you? Really do know how to cause trouble.’   
‘You know me too well,’ V said back. ‘Anyway, when we’re on that construction site, me and Takemura get bored, so we strike up a conversation. He tells me about how he grew up in Japanese slums, and I tell him about my time in the Bakkers, you know, racing a bobber, first kiss in a synthcorn field, the standard nomad stuff. But it’s at that point that I started to properly think about what I’d been missing since I first came to NC. Of course I’d already met you at that point, and I had the Aldecaldos at the back of my mind when I was talkin’ about that stuff. See, when I was there on that construction site, back in the concrete jungle and thinkin’ about the world outside whilst plotting how to infiltrate the evil empire, it all hit me all of a sudden. You, the open road, the Aldecaldos… they only seemed to matter more and more, reminded me of what I’d been missing for so long.’   
‘So what happened to this Takemura guy?’ Panam asked. ‘How come I’m only just hearing about him?’   
‘He was a good guy deep down,’ V replied, his tone growing more serious. ‘But he was wedded to the corp, regardless of the fact that Yorinobu tried to scapegoat the Emperor’s death on him. See, I had the option to help Hanako once, and that in turn would help Takemura. But I didn’t take it. Instead, what did I do?’  
Panam looked at him, slightly puzzled.  
‘What I did instead was I called you at 3am from a rooftop cause I was dying, you gonk!’  
Panam smiled a little, and V continued.  
‘We worked together a lot, actually, Takemura and I. When the raid happened, when we managed to lay waste to Arasaka, Takemura felt like I’d betrayed him, and honestly, part of me understands where he’s comin’ from. ‘Saka might be as corrupt as all hell, but it really was his whole life.’  
V paused again for a moment, and his tone became even more somber, before continuing.  
‘Some time after the raid, Takemura called me one last time. He told me to rot in hell, and when he hung up it looked like he was intent on runnin’ himself through with a katana. If not that, I don’t know what the hell else he would’ve done. It’s been one of the many things keeping me awake at night these past few weeks. That, and everyone else we’ve lost. Guess I’ve only just found the courage to talk about it now.’  
‘Oh V,’ Panam said, putting her arm around his shoulders whilst taking care not to aggravate her injury. ‘It’s good that you have a conscience. Rare, nowadays, too.’  
V rested his head on her, and the two of them stared out over the forgotten piece of Tucson that they had found for a little while longer, taking their time before their inevitable departure back to the auto shop, and then back to camp.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


_12.30pm  
_ _Teddy’s Auto’s, Tucson_

‘Axle’s replaced, suspension’s been checked and everything’s as it should be, we even changed the oil for you,’ Teddy said.  
‘Thanks, Teddy,’ Panam replied, ‘and sorry if I lost my temper a bit yesterday. I think I’m feeling a bit better now.’  
‘Hey, no hard feelings,’ he replied, before briefly glancing at her shoulder. ‘Say, is everything okay? What did you do to your arm?’  
‘Snagged it on barbed wire,’ she replied, thinking quickly. ‘Took a shortcut over a fence.’   
‘Hey, look, whatever you got up to, I won’t question it,’ Teddy said back. He then turned towards V. ‘You got the eddies?’  
‘Transferrin’ em over now,’ he said. ‘Plus tip.’  
‘Thanks,’ Teddy said. ‘Is there anything else I can do, or is that everything?’  
‘All good, thanks,’ said Panam.   
‘In that case, she’s all yours!’  
Teddy then gestured for one of his mechanics to get the Thorton out of the workshop, and the mechanic nodded back, opening up the large sliding doors before getting in the cab, and moving the vehicle the few feet distance it took to get it outside.   
‘Any other problems, just give me a call,’ Teddy said to the pair of them.   
‘Cheers again,’ V said, ‘this car means a lot to Panam.’  
‘My pleasure,’ he said back. ‘You two take care now!’  
With that, V and Panam left the workshop reception, and headed over to the Thorton.   
‘Sure you’re good to drive with that arm?’ V said to her.  
‘I’ll manage,’ she replied. ‘At least I’m less likely than you to pass out at the wheel.’  
‘True,’ V said back. Panam opened the driver's side door and climbed in, and V followed, getting into the passenger’s seat. As Panam fiddled with the controls to make sure everything was working, V decided to pick up one of the items that had been left in the dashboard.  
‘Look at that,’ V said, holding up a hex nut that had been knocked and twisted severely out of shape. ‘Desert run really did do a number on the old axle!’

Panam looked over, inspecting the nut briefly.  
‘Ha!’ she said. ‘Just hope they remembered to fit a new one underneath. Keep it, not like it’s much use to the car anymore, but I’m sure you’ll find a use for it.’  
‘I’m sure I will,’ V replied. As he slipped the nut into his pocket, Panam started the engine, and revved it a couple of times, making sure it still spoke with the same satisfying roar. Disengaging the handbrake, she pulled the Mackinaw forward, and maneuvered it to the point where she was able to pull out onto the road, and as they left Teddy’s Auto’s behind, V watched the streets of Tucson pass by. However, as they got out onto the main road, he suddenly found himself fixating on one particular beige van that was heading in the opposite direction to them, and he wondered to himself for a moment; _do I recognise that vehicle?_

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


_1pm  
_ _Tucson Aldecaldos Camp_

  
  


‘I’m gettin’ antsy, Carol,’ Mitch said, looking out of the camp towards where Cassidy was working hard to try and pick up a trace of the stalker and possible would-be assassin that the clan had narrowly avoided confrontation with the previous evening. That morning, he had casually inspected the area of bushes where he believed he saw movement, and indeed, had found crawl marks in the dust. Now, he had ordered several of the Aldecaldos to line up and slowly sweep the ground in that area, on the off chance that they might uncover anything else that would be an indication of the stalker’s identity, or where he went.   
‘Really think he’s likely to find anything?’ Carol asked.  
‘Can only hope so,’ Mitch replied. ‘If it’s what it looks like, and there really is some corpo assassin after us for what happened at ‘Saka Tower, it’s bad news for everyone.’  
Just then, the two of them were alerted to the distinctive sound of a familiar engine in the distance.   
‘There they are at last,’ Mitch said, as the Thorton Mackinaw appeared from over the horizon, moving closer and closer while Mitch and Carol watched. As it neared the perimeter, the car pulled left, and drove around the Eastern end of the camp, before turning towards where Cassidy’s search party was, and then driving slowly in their direction to see what was going on. Cassidy could see that Panam’s car was going to cross the area he was trying to examine, and as the car drew closer, Cassidy crossed his arms to signal them to halt.  
‘Stop, stop!’ he yelled, continuing to aggressively gesture to them to pull up.  
‘The hell is all this, then?’ Panam muttered to herself, hitting the brake and bringing the Thorton to a halt.   
‘Did we miss out on some excitement?’ V said. Both of them opened their doors and exited the vehicle, their boots landing on the arid desert ground underfoot.   
‘Can you not see I’m trying to keep this area clear?’ Cassidy yelled again.   
‘What the hell’s the problem?’ Panam said back.  
‘Problem is, we’re trying to comb this area for evidence, and you just drove right into it,’ the cowboy replied.  
‘Wait, evidence of what?’ questioned V.  
‘Our stalker,’ the cowboy said.   
V and Panam looked back at him, even more confused.   
‘You want the whole rundown of what we found last night and this mornin’? Fine then, join me in the command truck in ten minutes. We’ll give you the entire debrief, and what this mess means for us.’ He then turned to the rest of the Aldecaldos that were lined up besides him. ‘Think we’re done here.’   
As the Aldecaldos broke formation and returned to what they were doing, Cassidy then looked back at Panam once more.  
'Also, what happened to your arm?' he asked.   
'Barbed wire,' she quickly replied.  
'Whatever you say,' said Cassidy.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


_Fifteen minutes later_

‘An assassin? You're serious?’ V asked, scratching his head while giving Cassidy a puzzled look. All the senior members were there in the HQ vehicle; V, Panam, Cassidy, Carol, Mitch. The equipment was switched off, and the doors were closed, making the space feel like even more of a coffin then it did otherwise. The circumstances of the briefing necessitated privacy from all but the core members.   
‘Wouldn’t be tellin’ ya if I wasn’t,’ Cassidy said back to V. ‘Well, either that, or one of us has an extremely determined secret admirer.’  
‘And what about the tracker?’ Panam said. ‘How did they manage to put that on Joel’s car?’  
‘Not too sure,’ replied Cassidy, ‘but I got a hunch it could’ve been back in San Lucy. Some of the boys went out to get beer a couple of nights before the Raffens jumped us, and I remember some of ‘em talkin’ about how they thought there was someone else besides just them in the parking lot of the motel they found. Thought that was just them being paranoid at the time, but now…’  
‘Something still doesn’t add up,’ Mitch chimed in. ‘Whoever we’re dealing with, they’re clearly good. But why come for any of us? What’s that likely to achieve?’  
‘That’s what concerns me,’ Cassidy said. ‘Could be revenge for Arasaka… or something altogether more nefarious. Either way, we’ll have to keep our guard out.’  
There’s one more thing,’ said Mitch. He got out the small scrap of paper he had found the previous evening, and showed it to V and Panam. They studied it for a moment, and both turned slightly pale as they realized what they were reading.   
‘So there’s a rat among us as well?’ V said.   
‘Brings me no joy whatsoever to tell you,’ Mitch said solemnly.   
‘Are you sure this definitely came from within camp?’ Panam asked.   
‘We found it in the service tent just lying on the floor last night,’ answered Carol. ‘Must’ve slipped out of the pocket of whoever had it. Strongly doubt anyone besides someone in the clan could’ve bought it out this far. Unless it was the coyotes.’

 _The coyotes._ It was a running joke amongst the Bright Family Aldecaldos, to blame anything unexpected on coyotes. However, in spite of Carol’s remark, now was a time quite devoid of laughter. Mitch was able to crack a half smile, but that was it. V could see without second thought why things had turned so dour. Ever since he had crossed paths with them, they had always had a plan. Panam would come up with the basis of the idea, and Mitch would implement the logistics, whilst Saul was able to offer dissent back when he was around. Carol and Cassidy were always able to offer their solo skills, and finally, by the time V himself came along, he was often the one who was able to pull all the elements together, and ensure the machine ran smoothly. However, now, as he looked at each of their increasingly glum faces, it was clear that there was no plan. Their situation was the following: They were out in the middle of a godforsaken desert, being hunted by an unknown individual, probably a trained corpo agent. There was also a rat amongst them, and they had lost their most valuable material assets to the Raffen Shiv. Finally, to top it all off, the odds of V surviving the next few months were rapidly shrinking. Only now, though, in that moment of reflection, was all this finally beginning to hit them. Feeling hopeless was, perhaps, the most understandable reaction to the situation. But it did not help. Something had to be done. The bliss of the night before had passed, and now, all of a sudden, V felt the weight of the clan on his shoulders, as even Panam this time was hard pressed to come up with any solutions. A long silence followed, before V finally spoke up.  
‘I think,’ he said pensively, looking across the faces of the others, as if to try and apprehend how they would react to his next words. ‘I think that there have been times when we all thought about giving up, when it all seemed too much, and now is one of those times. But once upon a time, I had a voice in my head, and that voice taught me a few things. One of the first things that it taught me was to be my own person. To make my own path, and choose the people that truly matter. I guess that path brought me here. ’ He paused for a moment, while everyone in the truck looked at him, and then continued. ‘That voice taught me so many other things as well, but the last thing I heard from that voice, my… passenger… my... guardian angel? He told me to never stop fighting. Now, I intend to follow that advice, and you know what? We might be in the shit currently but we’re Aldecaldos, dammit! We took down Arasaka! There’s nothing we can’t face when we all pull together and stay true to ourselves. Who’s with me?’  
‘Aye,’ said Carol first of all.  
‘Aye, said Mitch, following suit.   
‘Aye indeed,’ Cassidy said, giving V a gentle nod.  
‘Aye,’ said Panam finally. ‘We will find a way out of this. Not gonna let you down now, V. Not after everything.’  
‘Oh Panam, I really don’t deserve you,’ he replied.  
‘I think we’re well past that,’ she rebutted, before gently caressing his forearm, and then turning back to the group. ‘We reconvene tomorrow morning to discuss our options. Until then, get some rest. I’m doubling the sentries tonight just in case anything else goes down. Any issues?’  
  
The silence that she got back from them served as her answer.  
  
‘Very well then. We meet properly tomorrow, and in the meantime, we get ourselves in order. That’s all for now, thank you.’  
With that, Mitch, Carol and Cassidy exited the truck, and last of all V and Panam followed.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


_3pm  
_ _Tucson  
_ _キツネは彼の次の動きを計画するために後退します_

  
  


How had V managed to slip away from him twice now? How!

Takemura sat in his van, looking out over the dusty parking lot he had found to stop in, and contemplated his fortune so far. V had been lucky, far too lucky, but regardless, Takemura was determined to make a third attempt, and was willing to do whatever necessary to finally put an end to that stubborn merc. He had nothing else to lose, and no other options that he could see. But he would also have to lay low - ever since the Aldecaldos had discovered the tracker, they were now on the lookout. It was now too risky to hunt his prey in the camp. He would instead have to choose a place where they were in unfamiliar territory, at a time when they would not be expecting it. Of course, Takemura would need to plan first. His tracker may have been compromised, but there were bound to be leads in Tucson that could help. After all, he was certain that V had been into the city, he even thought he saw him, sitting in the passenger seat of the unmistakable Thorton he had passed earlier. First of all, though, he would need a place to stay. He got out of the van, and locked it carefully so that no one would be likely to access the items held within, and then walked out of the parking lot and down the main road for a few meters, before coming across a venue that looked suitable for him to stay for a few days and plan his next move. _The Rifle Taphouse. Rooms available._

  
  
  



End file.
